About the Book

Book: Shaded Goodness

Author: Kathleen J. Robison

Genre: Romantic Suspense

Release Date: June 10, 2025

Jacquie Dupre has worked tirelessly to give her daughter, Destiny, a future free from the mistakes of her past. But when Mickey, her ex-husband returns to Bay Town, her carefully built world begins to crumble. He claims he’s changed. He’s conquered his addiction that destroyed too many lives, but can Jacquie believe him? As old wounds resurface and a dangerous figure from their past threatens their fragile peace, Jacquie must confront her deepest fears—about Mickey, about love, and about God. Can faith truly heal, can goodness prevail, or will their future be forever shaded by their past?

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I received a complimentary copy of this book, and all opinions given are my own and not an endorsement of all author’s opinions

Author Interview

How do you weave Biblical truths into your writing?

Jesus is the most important person in my life. Now that I’m much older and my kids have grown, I have the privilege to spend endless time with Him through prayer and His Word. It’s because of His closeness that weaving Biblical truth into my writing comes naturally through my characters. I also try to remember when I was a new Christian or before I had any faith and use those memories to craft characters searching for truth. The titles in my Bay Town Series hint at the virtues and struggles that we all encounter, as seen in my new release, Shaded Goodness. Can you guess what’s in store?

Do you have a favorite time of day you are most productive in your writing?

Always early morning. It’s so quiet except for the birds chirping. I do my devotionals, go for a walk, and then begin writing. I usually continue for about four hours or until I reach my daily word count goal. However, when I’m meeting a deadline, I can be pretty productive at any time of day or night. God has a lot to do with giving me the strength to push through because evenings are when I really shut down and rest.

Why did you pick this genre for your book?

The first story I ever wrote, Shattered Guilt, was a page-turner from the start. I didn’t have a genre in mind; I just started writing! In Book Two, Restored Grace, I continued with the same theme of human trafficking, and when my publisher asked for more, I expanded on the Christian Romantic Suspense genre.

However, I do love mysteries and suspense, and I also appreciate seeing redemption and reconciliation after a difficult trial. I’m also a hopeless romantic! By combining these two genres, romance and suspense naturally create conflict and ultimately foster unity between the characters. I love to write about a faith journey through one or more characters, and suspenseful situations bring about the issue of trust in one another and in God.

What is your next big goal as an author?

I have two. First, I hope to finish a middle-grade fantasy book for my grandsons. I began writing it quite some time ago and hope to finish it before my time on earth is done! It’s quite a challenge, as I don’t read fantasy and have never written a young adult story. I’d like to leave a legacy for my grandchildren, encouraging them to follow God’s calling, whatever that may be.

Secondly, writing a few books on parenting advice is on my back burner, nagging at me! Because my husband and I have eight great, not perfect, children and have been blessed with twenty-one wonderful grandchildren, we’ve often been asked to share our secrets. We have none! But we can always share what worked for us.

Of course, it’s totally the Lord, but we have some practical things that we know the Lord has used over the years. Our family is very close and so far faithful to the Lord in following His plan for our lives. I’d love to encourage young parents to raise loving families who love and serve Jesus and to trust that He who has begun a good work is faithful to complete it. Amen!

Thank you for allowing me to share a little about my writing journey. I treasure this time in my life when I’m able to write, and I hope you are encouraged to pursue God’s calling wherever you are in your life’s journey.

About the Author

Kathleen J. Robison weaves tales that inspire a walk of faith and a reliance on God’s guidance through life’s trials. With endearing characters, her stories are a testament to the resilience of broken lives, revived through hope and renewed through God’s grace. Kathleen and her husband call Southern California home residing near the beach and find their most joy in the company of their nineteen and counting grandchildren.

More from Kathleen

Have you ever heard of a Shoofly? The word conjures up an annoying, buzzing insect, but a Shoofly is a magnificent white, wooden, raised gazebo-like structure built around giant oaks and sycamore trees. Back in the 1800s, in the south, they elegantly dotted the coastline of Mississippi. Almost every vacation boarding house boasted one. A relaxing venue for people to gather while avoiding the large horse flies that tended to hover closer to the ground, pestering guests and residents. The raised platform also allowed guests to enjoy the ocean breezes on sweltering hot summer days. Sounds romantic, doesn’t it? Unfortunately, due to storms, hurricanes, and erosion, Shooflys all but disappeared in the 1900s. Yet in Bay St. Louis, Mississippi, the setting of my Bay Town Books, you can visit a Shoofly today in the local park downtown. In 1989, a group of town women decided to resurrect the nostalgic structure and had one built. It was completed nearly one hundred years after the near extinction of most of the iconic Shooflys along the Gulf Coast. It’s a key setting in my book, Shaded Goodness.

[Insert Guest Post Pictures Here]

Recently, my childhood friend returned to visit Bay St. Louis. I asked him to take a picture of the Shoofly, and his wife took the shot above of him waving from the deck. He remembers visiting my family in Bay St. Louis sixty years ago, and he said it still has the charm and hasn’t changed or grown much. Except that it’s now an artisan’s dream! Can you imagine? I can. It’s why I set my romantic suspense series in the fictional setting of Bay Town, inspired by Bay St. Louis. Shaded Goodness is the last in the book series.

“You got to forgive him, Jacquie. And no, I haven’t seen him. But I have been talking to Pastor Roland, and it’s a dark spot, one of many in my soul.”

“Dark spots? Is that what you call ’em?” Jacquie threw up her hands. “I can’t even go there. That man killed –”

Themes of forgiveness, second chances, and redemption are woven throughout Shaded Goodness. It was a joy to write because the male protagonist in this book was inspired by the character of my deceased ex-brother-in-law. Shaded Goodness is entirely fictional, but I loved using Mickey’s good traits to craft his character. He was a truly good soul who sadly made poor choices throughout his life. I like to think that if he had lived long enough, his life might have turned out like Mickey’s in this book, happily ever after. That’s why I enjoyed writing this story, as it allowed me to give Mickey a life of redemption here on earth, and I’m grateful that he’s living it in eternity. His love for the Lord in his last years proved contagious, just like his Christ-indwelling goodness. All glory to the Lord.

I pray for my readers that, as in all my books, you will be encouraged in your faith. That’s why I like writing about second chances and reconciliation. Because God is all about that, isn’t he? The Bay Town Series is a collection of stand-alone books. Still, the returning characters, after facing their own troubles and tragedies, help their neighbors as they face similar trials. 2 Corinthians 1:4-5 instructs us to do just that. Some characters choose the right path, and some don’t, just like in real life. But God’s promised hope is extended to all.

Shaded Goodness comes full circle from book one. Melanie Thompson Brooks champions through tragedy in the prequel and in Shattered Guilt. Her growth enables her to serve as the guiding voice to Jacquie Dupree in Shaded Goodness. With similar backgrounds, the pain of their pasts threatens to unravel their future. You won’t need to read Shattered Guilt, Book One, to enjoy Shaded Goodness, Book Five, but I think you’ll want to go back and get to know the lovely people of Bay Town through Restored Grace (First Place in the National Excellence in Writing competition), Shadowed Doubt, and Ransomed Peace. I think you’ll find some good friends and wish they really were your neighbors.

I hope you’ll fall in love with the setting where I lived for a short time as a child. It’s why I set my books in the deep south of Mississippi. Where life was slower, and the small-town community came together for events and rallied and prayed for one another during difficulties, much like the body of Christ should. Come on down to Bay Town; it just may become home.